June initiated me to my 2nd Degree and Master/Teacher Degree of the Usui System of Natural Healing i.e. Reiki and was my Friend and a Mentor to me for over 20 years and a Reiki Granny to my students!

It is with sadness that I tell of her passing on Saturday 14th March 2015 She would have been 85 years old in May.

The Celebration and Green Burial Ceremony took place at the Wilkes Wood Green Burial Ground by the Findhorn Foundation on Tuesday 24th March 2015

The day was sunny, and there was a nip in the air. We started by meeting for a warm drink in the Sunshine Room in the new housing cluster called East Whins, at the top of the runway of the Foundation.

Many had brought flowers, some filled vases in the Sunshine Room for our return, while others were taken to be placed on her coffin later.

Just before noon June arrived in her eco wicker coffin, resting on a simple wooden trailer which would be drawn through the woods by family and friends to the burial site.

At 12 noon the procession started the journey to take June to be laid to rest. Before we left we were offered a selection of Junes colourful scarves so that we could place them on her wicker coffin.

The Threshold Choir sang to welcome us and guide us all to the graveside.

The Threshold Choir

Will Russell, an Interfaith Minister, led the ceremony and spoke
of June's life. Family members contributed and friends were also given the
opportunity to say a few words if they so chose.

June's Family are:

Her son Mark, his wife Sue and granddaughters Lauren and Hayley.

Her other son Robert and wife Debbie and granddaughter Samantha. Granddaughters Jasmine and Charlotte were not able to attend, but sent messages.

Wendy, June's daughter with granddaughter Emily and husband Rob, and great-granddaughters Erin and Isla, also granddaughter Sophie with husband Chris and great grandson Ollie.

Also June's nephew Geoff, son of her brother John and wife Avril, who along with niece Liza were not able to attend.

Jenny Smith (in the orange jacket) sang a chant that she had chanted to June previously - it was clear and moving.

Jenny was accompanied by Corrie, complete with scarf!

We were offered the opportunity to take a
scarf from the coffin as a keepsake of June. Single flowers were placed
on the coffin by several people, then June was lowered into the ground
to Rest in Peace, and to return to nature.

Syncronistically as Will said the Final Words several planes flew over - as though in a flypast. Wonderful!

FINAL
WORDS- Spoken by Will

May
all the love and honouring and tributes to June be received by her now as a wave
of love and healing. I start to bring our ceremony to a close
now.

Dear
JuneToday
we have honoured you as a remarkable woman, a mum, nanny and great nanny, a
nanny in law, wife and friend – whatever you were to each of us one thing is
clear – you were, are and always will be, well loved.You
were here for a time with us. You blossomed and you bloomed as you journeyed
through life’s joys and challenges.Like
your friends the trees you were weathered - at times blown by wind and storm,
warmed by the sun, frozen by snow, nourished by the earth, washed and fed by
rainAnd
though our human hearts are sad that you are gone and we feel our loss and miss
you, still we stand strong and rooted here together, grounded in the legacy of
your love and life and the memories of all we shared.We
have laid your earthly body to rest, to embrace the great cycle of the
seasons.Know
how loved you are; Know how appreciated you are.Be
free now June, be at peace, all is well.Be as
one with the love and light of Life’s Longing for
Itself.Good
bye.

A pail of soil was there for those who wished to scatter a handful onto her coffin in its resting place.

The choir sang again, and we left to wander reflectively through the woods to return to the Sunshine Room for some very yummy soups made by Wendy and some equally delicious cakes.

More lovely words were said about June, and stories exchanged. Thanks were given to Wendy, from her family, for her amazing care and dedication to June. Also thanks to the Carers who had helped in the final months of June's life.

There was a book of memories that we could write in, and also boards with pictures of June from childhood through to her later years.

It was a truly beautiful and fitting way to pay tribute to the amazing woman that was June Woods and who I am sure lives on in Spirit, and in our hearts.

A mini Biography of June Woods

by her son Mark Springett

30 May 1930 to 14 March
2015

Born in
Chelmsford to Gordon and Ivy Woods.

She started
life in the heart of Chelmsford and lived seven doors down from Browns Wood
yard, which still exists as a builders timber yard today. She talked about how
she and a friend used to accompany the horse drawn barges down the river to
Maldon and how they used to help prepare the horses at carnival, polishing the
brasses and leather fittings and making paper flowers and streamers for the
horses to wear. She also talked about how the children would dress up in fancy
dress and she could also remember dressing as a jar of marmalade on one of
these occasions.

At about two
years old a baby sister was born, Vera unfortunately died from the effects of
whooping cough after about 18 months.

After
another two years her Brother John Henry was born. Before the war they moved
onto a relatively new estate in Springfield which had a bigger garden and
somewhere for her Dad to grow lots of vegetables. As well as her Dads love of
gardening she also talked about her mothers love of dressmaking and during her
early years June trained in Ballet & Dance and proudly talked about how she
could do the splits, she talked about the costumes her mother used to make and
how they used to perform at old peoples homes and other small concerts.

War started
when June was 9 years old around the time her brother John had just started
school, she remembered her Dad and neighbours building an air raid shelter in the
garden, which she refused to go down at times there as she had a fear of
spiders and caterpillars, later on they received one of the air raid shelters
for the front room in which she and her brother would sleep in every night.

June went to
school just the other side of town at Moulsham High School which was a brand
new school and one of and still is one of the largest schools in Essex, she
talked about a boy named Roy and how they used to meet at playtime and had to
talk through the playground fence as it was a segregated school for boys and
girls.

As time
moved on her friendship with Roy moved on from the playground and they started
stepping out together. They enjoyed many functions and dances until eventually
deciding to get married.

June &
Roy got married on the 25th July 1953 at All Saints Church in Springfield, the
family started with Wendy in Sept 1954, then Robert (Bob) in April 1957
followed finally with Mark in April 1962. Married life started in Woodham
Mortimer located between Chelmsford and Maldon where Roy had a job in the world
of farming, that world of farming eventually moved them to Scotland and near
Dumfries where the spectacular Dumfries Castle was practically in their back
garden.

June &
Roy unfortunately separated in the late 1960's, June returned to Essex and
started to make a life back in Chelmsford back where she was born. June had
various jobs including a bakery where she enjoyed sampling the cakes and taking
some home for the children.

Wendy and
Bob left home in the 70's, Wendy leaving for university and Bob the RAF. With
Mark just left at home, June had a little more time on her hands to socialise
and eventually she met Ken. Her relationship with Ken developed to the point
where they where married in 1979. She returned to Scotland on holiday with Ken
and fell back in love with the Scotland she had left all those years before.

June and Ken
decided to part some years later in the mid 1980's and following Marks wedding,
she decided that she wanted to return back to the Scotland she had rediscovered
and to new friends and a new community where she could develop her new Reiki
healing skills.

One of
June's loves was her garden and the birds that she encouraged to visit. Never
could one accuse June of letting the birds go hungry, in fact I wonder how they
ever took off after feasting at her numerous bird tables.

June's
nature was to nurture and her love and spiritual guidance given out to those
she encountered was given without judgement or opinion, her wisdom given with
just a few words, or just the silent but
reassuring hand on your shoulder.